


A work of art

by sciencepun (orphan_account)



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Human, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-22
Updated: 2015-03-22
Packaged: 2018-03-19 01:38:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3591495
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/sciencepun
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lukas Bondevik is an aspiring artist with a talent for for still life and scenery. He considers himself one of the best but will he have finally met his match with Mathias Køhler, whose portraits are kin to reality?</p>
            </blockquote>





	A work of art

Another normal day in the studio. Lounging about. Paint on finished projects drying. Students sketching each other for fun. Painting eyes. Drawing cartoons. Lukas. Quietly sitting in the corner of the room. He was sketching a vase full of daffodils. Like normal. Normal was just how he liked it. He'd never aspired for anything more than normality. A mundane life was a peaceful one, in his opinion and peaceful was best. Never would he have expected the peace to be disturbed by none other than the best art teacher he'd ever had.

"We have a new student" Ms Hedervary announced from the doorway, grabbing the students' attention. "Would you like to introduce yourself, Mathias?"

Lukas watched curiously from his corner as a young blond man stepped into his field of vision. He had wild hair, a mischievous glint in his blue eyes and a grin like a demon. This boy was trouble. Lukas decided it was in bis best interests to ignore this student the way he ignored most of the others.

"My name is Mathias Kohler, pleased to be here!" The young man smiled. Despite Lukas' decision to stay away he couldn't help but keep watching. "I'm 19 and I just moved here from Denmark because I heard this is one of the best art courses around." He smiled cheerfully.

"Why don't you show us what you can do" Ms Hedervary smiled.

Mathias took a sketchbook out from his bag and chose a pencil before beginning to sketch the outline of a face. Lukas turned back to his work. Drawings of people took time. There was no point in him watching for that long. Besides, he had no interest in the new student.

Lukas was just opening up his watercolour set to colour the sketch when he heard a cheerful 'Done!' from the direction of this Mathias. Mathias had finished his sketch surprisingly quickly. As Lukas looked up he heard a few of the girls giggle and a hoot from one of the boys. The drawing. It was of him.

"A masterpiece!" Mathias proclaimed.

Unfortunately, despite his annoyance and embarrassment at being the unwilling subject, Lukas had to agree. This Mathias really did have talent.

  
  


It was the end of the day. Lukas had earlier contemplated confronting Mathias about the drawing but had decided that it wasn't worth his time. And he didn't have that much time. He had to get home and feed the cat.

"Hey!" He felt a hand on his shoulder when he didn't stop. "Hey!"

"Let go of me!" Lukas tore his shoulder from the other's grip.

"Whoa" Lukas recognised the other as Mathias "I just wanted to say hi!"

"That's not how you go about it"

"Silly me" Mathias laughed.

"Can I go no-"

"Wait!" Mathias sounded mildly nervous "Do you have a name?"

"Is it any of your business?"

"Well I want to know what to call this..." He handed Lukas the sketch from earlier.

"So" Lukas waved the damned sketch at him "This is meant to be me?"

"I happen to think it's a good likeness...I captured your annoyed look quite well-AH" Mathias cried out upon Lukas' kicking him in the shin "What was that for?!"

"You draw me without my permission and then you insult me?" Lukas scowled "I think I'm justified"

"I couldn't help drawing you!"

"Yes?"

"It's not my fault that you're a god-damn work of art!"

Lukas looked away quickly, unsure of how he was meant to react to that.

"So," the taller blond persisted "Do you have a name?"

"Lukas" He sighed, hoping the other would leave him alone "My name is Lukas Bondevik. Now can I go home?"

"I saw your painting that you were doing. The one of the flowers."

Lukas groaned "What is it now?"

"You're good at still life."

"Yes."

"I'm terrible at still life" Mathias laughed.

"What do you want?"

"Can you teach me how to draw and paint like that?"

Lukas just sighed at him and left with a quiet 'maybe', though, he had no intention of actually helping the other. He had better things to do.

  
  


The rest of the week passed peacefully without incident. He spent his days working quietly in the corner of the art room even though he was already much further ahead than anyone else. He spent his evenings video calling his younger brother, Eirikur. The video calls weren't a particularly new thing for him. Eiri had been living with their father in Iceland since their parents had divorced when Lukas was only 7. Lukas had been too young to remember it that well. He spent his nights asleep or, if he couldn't get to sleep, practising painting the night sky. He was good at that. Actually he was good at pretty much anything that didn't involve the human face. Maybe that was why Mathias' proficiency in matters of human appearance annoyed him so much. He thought about all of these things and more as he peacefully put finishing touches onto a painting of a rose.

"Whoa" Mathias was suddenly next to him.

"What now?" Lukas sighed. He should have expected that the other would attempt to make conversation again.

"That looks like the real thing!"

"Yes..."

"How do you do that?"

Lukas raised an eyebrow. You couldn't just explain art. How would you? 'First you put down red, then add pink bits in every shade of pink in existence and then you add the highlights which are gold but silver in other places?' Any description you could give would be too vague with art. There was only one way to teach someone.

"Ms Hedervary taught me" Lukas replied monotonously.

"I've seen her painting though" Mathias wasn't giving in "You're better than even her!"

"I don't know" Lukas sighed, the other was really beginning to piss him off "I just put colour and hope for the best?"

"That's what all the good artists say they do!" He sounded like a wondrous child meeting his idol.

"That wasn't even a good explanation..."

"You have to have a method though, right?" Mathias smiled at him.

"No...I just...paint" Lukas tore finished painting out of his watercolour pad and put it to the side to dry, already starting to sketch the next one.

"Can I watch you just painting?" Mathias sounded so enthusiastic.

"Don't you have work to do?"

"Ms Hedervary told me that I can do whatever I want until they move on to the next unit. I'm too far behind to even bother catching up at this point"

"Oh" Lukas put his notebook to the side "I was actually about to go and ea-"

"I'll come with you! I can even pay if you want"

Lukas scowled at the other. It seemed that there was absolutely no possibility of being left alone. Resistance was futile. He sighed.

"All right then" He shot the other a death glare "Just don't embarrass me"

  
  


They sat in silence in the nearby coffee shop. Lukas mourning the end of his peaceful, carefree adulthood. Mathias sketching the pretty pastry in front of him. Several times a person leaving or arriving momentarily stopped to gawk at the sketch, which, in both Mathias' and Lukas' opinion was nothing to be proud of. It was messy. The proportions were all wrong.

"Is your line art always like this?" Lukas finally spoke up.

"Not always," the other smiled again, still with a slight look of frustration "Sometimes it's worse!"

"And your painting?" Lukas ignored the joke.

"My painting is excellent..." The other sighed and added "When I draw humans"

"Show me."

"Hmm sure," Mathias turned to a new page in his sketchbook. "Wait...can I use you as a model again?"

"Uh," Lukas had almost forgotten the events of Mathias' fateful first day. Almost. "Absolutely not. I told you not to embarrass me"

"But who else can I draw?" Mathias moaned, slumping down in his seat.

"I bet if you asked that barista she would let you," Lukas gestured to the woman who had repeatedly stopped to glance at them every time she went round to give people their orders. She saw them looking at her and promptly looked away, flustered.

"I guess..." Mathias still looked glum "You have a nicer face though..."

Lukas sighed, a slight flush of embarrassment on his cheeks and got up to talk to the barista. A few moments later she had come over to the table with him and was negotiating a way to be the subject of a painting while still being able to get on with her job. Mathias listened to their discussion for a few moments before taking out his phone and snapping a picture of her.

"Or we could do that," Lukas found himself angry at the other for his apparent lack of grace.

Suddenly Mathias jumped, still staring at his phone. Lukas and the barista who was apparently called Katyusha looked at him, waiting for an explanation.

"We have to get back to class!" Mathias sounded mildly panicked.

"Shit," Lukas swore checking his watch, they were already 10 minutes late.

"I'll finish it tonight!" Mathias promised the barista as they hurriedly gathered their belongings to go back to class.

  
  


That night Lukas lay awake, staring at the bare ceiling above him. He wasn't exactly behind. He was just less ahead than he would like to be. Damn Mathias. Why couldn't they have just waited until the end of the day. Wait. What was he thinking about? He didn't want to spend time around Mathias at all. This boy was trouble. He'd only get him in to trouble. And yet, Mathias was the only person to approach him, to try and befriend him out of the whole class. It was almost as if Mathias was trying, really trying to be his friend. But no. Lukas couldn't get involved. He didn't need more friends. He already had Arthur and Tino. And of course there was Eirikur. His small circle of close friends. That all lived so apart from each other... Even if he and Arthur both currently resided in England, Arthur was in London. London was several miles away from Bristol. Maybe he just needed someone who he could talk to any time. Not just when their times zones overlapped and they were all awake and free to talk. Maybe he just needed someone who he could confide in whenever he needed to. No. He wasn't going to admit that he was lonely. Mathias was trouble. He couldn't get involved.

  
  


"Hey Lukas!" Mathias greeted him boisterously the next day.

"What do you want?"

"I finished the sketch. It's a shame you didn't get to watch me do it" The taller blond pouted.

"It doesn't matter" Lukas brushed off the other.

"So...erm..." Lukas was surprised to see that Mathias was flustered so suddenly.

"What is it?" He asked cautiously. The other blond stared at him blankly for a moment.

"Do you have a...uh...a number?"

"I'm 19" Lukas teased him on purpose.

"I mean..ah...a phone number?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Well, if you end up teaching me still life then I'll need to keep in contact-"

"Listen, Mathias, I'm not here to make friends or to help anyone out. I'm not interested in you or your painting. Please, don't get your hopes up; I prefer being alone. I like sitting quietly to do my work"

Lukas felt his chest constrict as he said the words. He was being so cruel. Was it really necessary? Even if he did want to avoid Mathias was it really fair to push him away so readily? Was it really right to hurt the one person who had bothered to at least try to talk to him? Lukas stared at his feet. He didn't want to make eye contact with the other. He didn't want to feel any guiltier than he already did.

"Aww. That's a shame Lukas"

Lukas looked up to see the blond pouting at him. He didn't even look the slightest bit offended.

"What..." Lukas frowned in confusion.

"You won't push me away that easily!" The blond smiled mischievously. He was trouble, just as Lukas had expected "I have an offer to make."

Lukas looked at him in surprise "What could you possibly..."

"No offence, but, you really can't draw people"

Lukas gritted his teeth. How dare he? What was wrong with him? Didn't he know not to insult people on their insecurities?

"So, I'll teach you" Mathias grinned as if he hadn't just insulted Lukas.

"What makes you think..."

Mathias took his hands cutting him off. "I'll show you all my tricks!"

"No thank you" Lukas scowled at him.

"Come on" Mathias pleaded "Just once! You can come to my place and then if you don't want to you can go home and I'll leave you alone. It's what you want isn't it?"

Lukas stared at him. Half of him wanted to agree. The other half was reminding him that his plans for that day had been to avoid Mathias rather than to go to his house. He was pretty sure that it was one of those situations where his heart and his head were at a disagreement. He could go. It wouldn't do any harm. He could always leave. But, he didn't know Mathias that well. He should be careful. He pulled his hands away from Mathias and removed his phone from his pocket. He typed a quick message to Arthur: 'If I don't text you again at 4 o'clock: Call me'.

"Fine" Lukas stared at the other defiantly, asserting himself as a person who would not take any crap.

  
  


Mathias home was about 10 minutes away from the art building. It was a small apartment that he shared with his friends Gilbert and Alfred. Lukas quickly got to know them from how they constantly spoke to him without even pausing. Gilbert was 20 and studying Neurological science. Alfred was 19 and studying music. The three of them had met online when they were younger and had arranged all the way back then to go to college together. And they had.

"Do you live with anyone, Lukas?" Alfred asked loudly, at last finished with his life story.

"No"

"Sounds lonely. I'm gonna go out for a bit" Gilbert stood and turned to Alfred "You want to come?"

"Sure!"

The two of them were gone within minutes. Lukas looked around. Despite the apparent laziness of the three of them, the apartment seemed clean. It had enough space for three beds, a desk and an easel as well. It looked like it was a good place to live.

"Do you want to get started?" Mathias broke the new-found silence.

"All right"

It took only a few minutes to set up. Mathias lay on the floor, a teacup in front of him. Lukas sat browsing through pictures on his phone, looking for one of his brother.

"Right then" Mathias rolled onto his back to talk more easily "I think the best way to do this is for one of us to work while the other watches and helps them out. How about it?"

"Do we have time to work that way?" Lukas was finding it hard to conceal the irritation in his voice. In honesty he wanted to make as little contact with Mathias as he could.

"It's only 2:30"

"I suppose that's a yes then" Lukas rolled his eyes and put his phone down before him, having chosen an image. "Shall I help you out first?"

"You'd better come over here then"

Lukas got up and traipsed over to Mathias position on the carpeted floor. He sat down and crossed his legs.

"Aww come on, lie down properly!" Mathias laughed.

Lukas slid on to his stomach, allowing a good 10 centimetres of space between them. He didn't want to be too close to Mathias.

"Okay." The taller blond tapped his pencil to his lips "How do I go about doing this?"

"Try and draw the basic outline first." Lukas frowned thinking of how best to put forth his point "Oh! And don't make up perspective. Don't draw it as you think it should look. Draw what you see. Draw how it actually looks."

"Got it!" Mathias sketched a circle before adding a semi circle below it.

"No no. Not like that!" Lukas took the pencil from his hand "Move over; I'll show you."

Lukas moved into the space that Mathias had previously occupated. 10 centimetres from where he was before. Mathias only moved 5 centimetres. Ugh. Couldn't he move? They were too close. Lukas tried to ignore his discomfort and began to re-draw the outline of the teacup. In a few seconds he was done. He scooted back over to where he was before, relieved to have some space.

"Now you add details to the outline. And then some lines..."

Mathias was following his instructions but...The drawing was too loose. The shading was too dark. It was so frustrating. Frustrating enough that Lukas ignored his original intentions to make a little contact as possible and leant over the Dane to steal the pencil in correct the piece.

"There" Lukas said, standing up again "Like that"

He looked down at the other to find that Mathias was...blushing? Lukas felt his cheeks too redden as he realised that he'd had his chest pressed against Mathias back for a few minutes. A few minutes minimum.

"You can paint now" Lukas said quietly.

"Mhm"

Lukas made no more attempts at helping the other with his work aside from the odd remark about which colours to use and how to blend them. Finally the piece was finished and lying on the floor to dry as they both headed to the kitchen.

"How do I do this?" Lukas reluctantly held up the picture of his brother that he'd found earlier.

"Hmmm" Mathias tapped his forehead "Start by drawing a circle"

Lukas did as told.

"Then draw the outline of the jaw and cheeks"

Lukas did as told.

"Place the pupils"

Lukas did as told. And he did as told. And he did as told. Again and again. Following Mathias instructions until his phone began to ring. He picked up.

"So you're still alive" Came the sound of Arthur's voice from the other end of the line.

"Yes. I am." Lukas had forgotten his earlier text to his friend.

"Not injured or anything?"

"No. I am perfectly fine."

"Then what was the point?"

"Just in case."

"I have a three page literature essay due tomorrow. I ought to go."

"Goodbye, Arthur."

"Goodbye."

Lukas and Mathias looked at each other. For a moment they just took the other in. And then Lukas cracked a tiny smile. It really was funny. Funny that he had ever thought that he would be in danger.

  
  


Their agreement continued for weeks. They first only met at Mathias house. But then the went to the park for the scenery. To the coffee shop for the people. The Galleries for reference. Finally Lukas trusted Mathias enough to invite him to his own apartment. And then a week later gave him his number. They got closer. Close enough that they would pair up on projects when given the chance. Blending each others strengths to produce some of the best pieces in the class. And sometimes they would meet up purely for fun. They would hang out in the park having left their sketchbooks at home and would go to each others houses just to chat. It only took a month or so for Lukas to feel completely comfortable with the other. Aside from the occasional teasing of the girls and sometimes even Gilbert that he and Mathias must be dating. But for some reason the teasing made him flush, not in embarrassment, but, something else entirely. Yet he was happy to ignore the feeling in favour of his new resolution: To improve as much as possible. Then maybe he wouldn't even need Mathias.

  
  


"I'm going to get coffee, you want to come?" Mathias asked him one morning as they worked.

"Hm" Lukas stood "Sure"

"No" Mathias winced "Ah I should have phrased that better"

Lukas watched him fumble over his words, a slight uncertainty hanging around him as he picked his brush back up.

"I'll stay here then"

"No no no!" The other protested "No I- ah can we just talk outside" He looked at the group of people staring at them.

Lukas followed him out of the room, curiously. He was wondering what could possibly be going on. Once they were outside Mathias resumed his talking.

"Are you gay?"

"That was unexpected" Lukas said, teasing.

"Seriously though, are you?"

"Is this relevant?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Bi? Are you bi?"

"What does this have to do with anything?"

"I'm bi, what are you?" Mathias didn't answer his question.

"I'm about to strangle you if you don't tell me what's going on."

"But what are you-"

"Human," Lukas cut him off "Not your work of art, not a deity. I'm just...human. Nothing else"

They stood there locked in eye contact. What was going on? What was this? Lukas was half hoping that this was some random outburst of curiosity like when they first talked about each others families. He ignored the other half.

"Your sexuality, what is it?" Mathias asked a little more calmly. "I'm...curious. It doesn't really matter."

"Demisexual. I'm demisexual"

Mathias stood there for a second, not reacting, before bursting out in laughter. "You could have said!"

"I didn't see why."

"Do you want to go out then?" Mathias suddenly went very red "As in like properly going out or are we not close enough? Er if you-"

Lukas gently pressed his lips against Mathias'. "Just shut up"

  
  


 

**Author's Note:**

> This is the longest thing I've ever written! It's probably not that great though unfortunately but, hey practice makes perfect. It's a tad fluffier than anything else I've written seeing as I'm more into angst and tragedy myself. Did you notice that I managed to fit angst into even this au?  
> The ending seems to abrupt as well... Maybe I'll have to write an epilogue someday.
> 
> If you were wondering the Barista was Ukraine and Ms Hedervary was Hungary. Ah look at me trying to get in as many canon characters as possible. If you think I seriously should make an epilogue then I certainly would be happy to oblige. I really love thinking about what happens after a story has ended!
> 
> Again, thanks for reading!


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